Mohawk
noun
a member of a tribe of the most easterly of the Iroquois Five Nations, formerly resident along the Mohawk River, New York.
Mohawk
American
[moh-hawk]
/ ˈmoʊ hɔk /
noun
-
Mohawks,
plural
-
Mohawk
plural
-
a member of a tribe of the most easterly of the Iroquois Five Nations, formerly resident along the Mohawk River, New York.
-
the Iroquoian language of the Mohawk Indians.
-
a river flowing E from central New York to the Hudson. 148 miles (240 km) long.
-
Also called Mohawk haircut. (often lowercase) a hairstyle in which the head is shaved bare except for a strip of hair, usually with blunt, brushlike ends, down the center of the scalp from the forehead to the nape of the neck.
-
Military. a twin turboprop, two-seat U.S. Army aircraft fitted with cameras, radar, and infrared sensors and designed to monitor enemy operations.
Mohawk
1
British
/ ˈməʊhɔːk /
noun
-
a member of a North American Indian people formerly living along the Mohawk River; one of the Iroquois peoples
-
the language of this people, belonging to the Iroquoian family
mohawk
2
British
/ ˈməʊhɔːk /
noun
-
skating a half turn from either edge of either skate to the corresponding edge of the other skate
-
Also called (in Britain and certain other countries): mohican. a punk hairstyle in which the head is shaved at the sides and the remaining strip of hair is worn stiffly erect and sometimes brightly coloured
Mohawk
3
British
/ ˈməʊhɔːk /
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of mohawk
C19: after Mohawk 1
Explanation
A mohawk is a hairstyle created by shaving the hair on each side of the head, leaving a wide strip of longer hair down the middle. While mohawks are commonly associated with punk music fans in the 1980s, David Beckham and Mr. T have also sported this hair style. The mohawk has been around for centuries, worn by groups as varied as 600 BCE Scythian warriors and World War II American paratroopers. It's perhaps most famous for its popularity among fans of punk and hardcore music starting in the 1980s. While it's named for the Mohawk tribe of Native Americans, it more closely resembles the way the Pawnees traditionally styled their hair than the way the Mohawks did, with a square patch at the back of the head).
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
That clemency was reciprocated when the retreating raiders were caught by determined Mohawk forces led by Lawrence, north of Lake Champlain.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
Auto parts provider LKQ, chemical company Solstice Advanced Materials, and flooring manufacturer Mohawk Industries will be booted out of the S&P 500 as part of the reshuffle.
From Barron's ● Dec. 8, 2025
Sam Mohawk is a 51-year-old quality assurance investigator at Boeing's factory in Renton near Seattle, a huge plant where the 737 Max is built.
From BBC ● Dec. 27, 2024
Recently, Alexis joined castmate Devery Jacobs, who was raised in Kahnawake Mohawk Territory and played rez dog Elora Danan, to excavate some “Reservation Dogs” memories — including the fluctuating extremes of Oklahoma weather.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2024
V^/ome few months later, a mob assembled in Old South Meeting House; and, after a rousing word by Mr. Adams, some habited themselves as Mohawk Indians and repaired to the wharves, where they dumped tea.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson
In 1959, he had sported a mohawk to honor Native Americans.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 26, 2026
But only one mohawk of alfalfa was left.
From New York Times ● Nov. 23, 2024
A padded waffle shirt worn by Miguel on the cover of a magazine, a hoodie with a furry mohawk stripe worn by Jay 305 front row at L.A.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 8, 2023
Vanessa had tucked her spiky blue mohawk beneath a wig of thick long hair.
From Slate ● Sep. 26, 2023
The purple mohawk was long gone, but Sydney still felt like the same person who’d tormented the faculty at Wallangarra.
From "City Spies" by James Ponti
The role of the Five Nations as English allies was complicated because some Mohawks had already gravitated to Catholic missions in New France and supported the French.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
The Mohawks, like tribes in Michigan and other states, set up their own regulations.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 24, 2022
That force had recently been locked in a sometimes tense standoff with several Mohawks from Six Nations who were trying to halt a construction project on land deeded to them by Britain in 1784.
From New York Times ● Dec. 11, 2021
In New York City, Mohawks were famous for their death-defying construction work on skyscrapers and bridges.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 10, 2019
Hampshire hairstyles ranged from dreadlocks to electric blue Mohawks to shaved heads.
From "Three Little Words: A Memoir" by Ashley Rhodes-Courter
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
